


Swiftly Home

by Northern_Lady



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Norse Religion & Lore, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Adventure & Romance, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Handmaidens, Happy Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2021-01-22 10:56:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21300911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Northern_Lady/pseuds/Northern_Lady
Summary: This story is about Gna who was handmaiden and messenger to Frigga in the mythology. It takes place after the Battle of New York (EndGame version) when Loki has the tesseract and is living somewhere other than an Asgardian cell due to his escape of SHIELD custody. Frigga, unable to reach her son telepathically any longer, tries to send him a message by way of her handmaiden.
Relationships: Loki/Gna
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	Swiftly Home

She approached Frigga’s chambers in a rush. Gna was always in a hurry. As Frigga’s handmaiden and personal messenger Gna had many places to be and time was always of the essence. She had finished all her errands and was headed to update her queen with the results of her deliveries. Gna stopped outside of the chamber door to straighten her long curly haired blonde braid. It wouldn’t do to visit the queen with her hair awry and her clothes a mess. Her travels were so often swift and even dangerous that Gna didn’t always remember the need to look presentable in public spaces. The handmaiden rebraided her hair, shook the dust out of her skirts, and knocked on the queen’s door. 

“Gna,” Frigga opened her door with a smile. “You’re back already? Always so swift. How did it go?” 

“Your flowers for the party will be ready in two days time. Lady Cassandra thanks you for the herbs you sent and wants you to know she is feeling much better. And the village on Vaneheim sends a whole bushel of the herbs you requested. I paid for them in full.” Gna reported to her queen. 

“Well then, I would say all is well,” Frigga said. 

There was something in the Queen’s tone, a hint of sadness, that made Gna believe that Frigga was not being honest with herself. “But are you well, my lady?” Gna asked with concern. 

“I am as well as I need to be, my dear,” Frigga said kindly. 

“It’s Loki isn’t it? You still worry for him,” Gna said, knowing that her queen cared deeply for Loki in spite of his crimes and in spite of Odin’s determination to find Loki and bring him to justice for the attack on Midgard. 

Frigga let out a sigh of resignation. “You are always so perceptive, Gna. It’s true, I do worry for Loki. I am no longer able to reach him. For months I had been able to speak to him with magic and telepathy but three weeks ago he closed himself off from me and I have no way of knowing if he is even safe.” 

“What if I could find him for you and bring him a message? Would that put your mind at ease?” Gna offered. 

“It would be a long journey. I last spoke with Loki at a Midgardian place called Boston. I thought he seemed happy there but somehow he lives in another time, the year 1860. I fear he is hiding even from me and would not be happy to see even my messenger.” 

“It wouldn’t be the first time I brought an unwelcome message to someone. I will do whatever you wish my lady. If it would put your mind at ease to send a message to your son and to receive word from him, I will gladly go. Besides, it has been years since I have had occasion to go to Midgard. I would love to go there again.” Gna loved to travel to many worlds whenever her queen had need of her. She loved having the chance to see new places and observe new people. The many adventures she had as the queen’s messenger made her thankful for her position every day. 

Frigga thought about Gna’s offer for but a moment. “Alright. I will need time to compose a letter. Come back in one hour and you will begin your journey. I trust that you can prepare yourself in that time?” 

“Of course my lady,” Gna smiled and curtsied, taking her leave. 

It didn’t take her long to pack. Gna stuffed three dresses and undergarments into a saddlebag, a cloak, a spare pair of boots, and a few food items completed her packing preparations. She returned to Frigga’s room at the appointed time. 

Frigga had the sealed letter in her hand and past it to Gna with a look or worry. “It won’t be easy to find him if he doesn’t want to be found,” the queen said. “I would go myself but he’d likely disguise himself the moment he saw me coming. You have a much better chance than I do.” 

“I’ll find him, my lady. I will,” Gna assured her. “I’ve never failed to deliver any of your messages before. I won’t fail this time either.” 

“I know you won’t my dear,” Frigga placed a hand on her shoulder. “But should you be unable to find him after a fortnight, you have my permission to return home. I don’t expect miracles.” 

Gna took her horse over the rainbow bridge. The horse had her own magic, granted by Frigga, to travel more swiftly than other beasts, and to enter places where others could not, including other times. The bifrost brought her to streets of a city. 

Boston of Midgard’s past was like Asgard in that people used horses for transportation and the women wore dresses. In many other ways it was different. Gna learned quickly that women of this city did not ride astride their horses. Most women rode in carriages or walked and a very few rode side saddle. The dresses were of a different fashion than her own dress but not so different that she looked entirely out of place. A few people gave her odd looks as she rode past them but in all she mostly went unnoticed. Gna rode for several hours with the feeling that she was heading towards something, her destination was near. Eventually Gna found what she was looking for in the form of a poster tacked to a shop door. The poster advertised a meeting for, The Society of Mischief. The date and time were clearly marked and had runic writing at the bottom. Gna now knew where and when to look for Loki. 

Gna found a livery for her horse and a room for the night. Tomorrow evening she would go the meeting for this strange Boston Society that Loki most likely had founded. She would deliver her message and then she would go home. In the meantime she had a whole day to explore this amazing Midgardian city and try their foods and drinks and look at their museums of art. 

She spent the entire next day exploring Boston of 1860 and she loved every moment of it. There was a large marketplace to visit, many manufacturing buildings, and a harbor with ships coming and going and men loading and unloading goods. Gna liked to watch the ships. She sat on a bench in view of the harbor for a half an hour eating a pastry and just watching the vessels come and go. She wondered where they were traveling to and wished for half a moment that should go with them. There were still so many places she wanted to see. She had never travelled by midgardian ship. Crossing the ocean in a human ship would be a new adventure. 

As the day neared evening Gna realized that two human men were following her. They had seen her spend coins from her bag at several shops and Gna was almost sure that it was her money that held their interest. They didn’t worry her very much. Asgardians were stronger than humans and Gna knew how to use the two daggers she carried beneath her skirts. If they had been Asgardian men they might have proved a challenge as she was a petite woman and was no warrior but she could put up enough of a fight to escape most who would harm her. 

Gna ducked in a narrow alley and the two men followed her. They caught up to her quickly and as she neared the end of the alley a carriage pulled up, blocking her exit. Gna turned to face her followers, and bit back her moment of fear at being cornered. 

“What’s a lovely lady like yourself doing wandering around without an escort?” One of the men asked. He wore a dark grey suit and a tattered hat. 

“I don’t need an escort,” Gna told them. She was well aware that women of this time didn’t traditionally go out alone. Even on Asgard women often did not go out alone. Gna had never been like them. Like lady Sif, Gna did not feel bound to honor traditions when the traditions only got in her way. 

“Well then,” The other man said, pulling a gun from the pocket of his dark jacket. “Who is going to stop us from taking all your money?” 

“I am,” Gna spoke more boldly than she felt. She was almost sure that their bullets could only bruise her at most. Before they could react she reached out and pushed the man who held the gun. He fired before he fell to the ground. The bullet impacted her shoulder and though it did hurt it didn’t pierce the skin or knock her back. She reached for the other man and pushed him over as well and while the both of them were on the ground she made her escape back the way she had come. 

She ran for three blocks before slowing her pace. She stopped long enough to rub at her bruised shoulder before heading to the place where Loki would be holding his meeting. It was growing dark outside and the meeting was being held in dimly lit hall. She found a window to peer through. A crowd of people were already gathering around a large fireplace. Gna watched from a distance as a each person to enter the crowd had to speak a password and give a secret handshake to approach the fireplace. The she saw him, Loki. He was dressed in the suit of a gentleman.and all the men and women around her were poised with admiration to hear what he had to say. Whatever he was saying to them she could not hear it from outside. The meeting went on for some time. Candles were lit, papers were passed out, and at one point all the people read the same words aloud. Gna waited until the meeting had dispersed before entering the large hall. 

She stood at the back of the hall near the door and took down the hood of her cloak. “Loki?” 

He looked up from where he had been gathering papers left behind by the attendees. “Who are you?” he asked warily. 

“I am Gna, Frigga’s handmaiden,” she approached him as she took the sealed message from her cloak. “She sent me with a message.” 

Loki looked down at the papers she held and hesitated to take them. “I don’t need any messages from Frigga. I already know what it says.” 

“Well I have to ask you to take it all the same. I have never failed to deliver a message for my queen. I’ll not be leaving until you take this.” 

“Burn the message. Go back to your queen and tell her you gave me her letter and that I am well,” Loki said, still not taking the message from her. 

Gna shook her head. “I will not lie to my queen.”

Loki swiped the letter out of her hand and put it into the stack of papers he was gathering. “Fine, I will burn it myself with the rest of these papers. Now go and tell her I am well. Your job is done.” 

There was something in his tone, a sadness in his eyes that Gna could not fully identify. “I will not lie to my queen,” she said more kindly than before. “You are not well.” 

Loki shook his head, “I don’t care what you tell her. Tell her I am a raging lunatic. Tell her I am murdering every Midgardian I can find left and right. Tell her I never want to see her again because she is not my mother in the first place!” 

Gna didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t convinced that Loki meant a word of what he had just told her. In fact she was sure he meant quite the opposite. He was hurting and he was hiding here leading some sort of occult meeting in an attempt to gain the admiration of the people he had once hoped to rule. How could she go back to Frigga and tell her that her son was in this state? 

“She still calls you her son,” Gna said gently. 

Loki looked disturbed by her statement but before he could reply to it, the door at the back of the hall opened and a group of men entered the room. Gna turned and found that she recognized two of them as the men who had attempted to rob her earlier. 

“It seems you were right Miss, you can take care of yourself just fine,” said the man who had shot her. “So well that Mr Essex will want to meet you.”

Gna regarded them warily. The two men who had tried to rob her had been joined by a group of at least twelve others. She was stronger than humans but she was no warrior. She wasn’t entirely sure she could escape so many men. “I have no interest in meeting your Mr Essex,” she told them firmly. 

“That’s too bad because when we told him about you he offered us a lot of money to bring you to him.” The gunman took a step closer to her. 

Gna took a step back and stepped into Loki. He put a hand on her shoulder just briefly and then he stepped in front of her. “The lady won’t be going anywhere with you.” 

“Get out of the way Olson,” one of the men spoke up to Loki. “Essex doesn’t care how wealthy you are or how many Society members support you. You’re not going to stop his project or us.” 

“This young woman works for my mother. If I allowed you to take her, my mother would never forgive me.” Loki told them. “I would suggest that you leave now while you still can.” 

Gna was honestly a little surprised that Loki would come to her defense. She didn’t expect that Loki wanted to see her harmed either but she was only a handmaiden and Frigga had many others. Before she could question it further she felt Loki’s hand grab hers and pull her back a few steps. It took her a moment to realize that Loki had created an illusion. The men in the room had moved forward to attack them but were instead fighting illusions. Loki pulled her a few more steps out a side door and into an alley. 

“We need to hurry,” he told her. “Come with me.”

Gna did not question him. She followed him as he led her down several streets and across four city blocks. They stopped outside of a large townhouse just briefly while Loki took a key from his pocket. Then he led her up a stairway to the front door which he unlocked.

“You’ll need to remain here for a day or two to be sure Essex men have stopped looking for you. It won’t be safe to summon the bifrost until they are well out of the way.” Loki told her as he shut the door behind them. 

“Who is Essex?” Gna asked him, confused. 

“Nathaniel Essex. He is a very powerful man and he is working very hard to increase that power. If he captures you, he might be able to gain Asgardian strength.” 

“And do what with it?” 

“Rule.” Loki said simply. 

“And you are opposed to this because…?” 

“Because I can do it better,” he told her. 

Gna let out a deflated sigh. Frigga would not like to hear this bit of news. Loki still had aspirations of ruling he had simply chosen a new path to power. “Well I can’t stay here. You have your message. I need to get my horse and go home. Though I do thank you for helping me escape just now.” 

“You don’t understand. You can’t leave yet. Essex men are everywhere and will be actively searching for you for at least a few days. You’ll have to go into an open area to summon the bifrost and if you do that they’ll find you.” 

Gna gave him a funny look. “I can summon the bifrost anywhere. I could just leave from here.” 

“No you can’t. I have shielded this room, this entire city block with magic so I won’t be found by my mother or by Heimdal. I won’t remove the shield, not even for your sake. So you can stay here until they stop searching for you or go outside the bounds of my shield and summon the bifrost at your own peril. It’s your choice.” 

Gna didn’t know what the best course of action was. She certainly didn’t want to be captured by the followers of this Nathaniel Essex. Yet the idea of staying alone with the disgraced prince didn’t entirely appeal to her either. Worse than that was the idea of being cooped up in one location for several days. She would likely die of boredom. 

“Fine,” she gave in. “I’ll stay until the search has grown quiet.” 

“Good,” Loki said as he removed his cloak and hung it on a hook near the door. 

Gna followed his lead and hung her own cloak as well. She still carried the bag which held her three dresses. She looked down at herself and realized that once again she was a bit of a wreck. The hem of her dress was muddied, her hair was coming loose from its braid, and the shoulder of her dress was torn with a bullet hole. Loki’s eyes fell on the bullet hole. 

“Did they shoot you?” 

Gna shrugged a little sheepishly. “I suppose they did. I am fine though.” 

“Of course you are but they couldn’t have known you would be fine. They did it for what? For money?” 

“Yes,” she admitted, a little surprised at his anger. 

“Only idiots resort to robbery to get money. Besides, you deserve better. Come, there is food in the kitchen. I am famished. I imagine you’re hungry as well.” 

Gna followed Loki to the kitchen of his house, rebraiding her mop of golden curls as she went. He had bread, cheese, ham, pie, and ale in his stores and she was thankful to have food that was similar to the food of home. 

“So what are you doing here of all places?” Gna asked him as she ate. It might be helpful to have more information to give Frigga when she returned. 

“In a few years there will be a war in this country. By the time it comes I will be ready to take advantage of the chaos.” 

“As a ruler?” she asked him, though it still wasn’t clear to her how he planned to take advantage of this chaos. 

“There are other ways to rule besides thrones and political power. Wealth and influence are another way…” he said, amused with himself and his plans. 

“And you think this will make you happy?” Gna asked, simply not understanding why he felt he needed to do this. 

There was a hint of anger and confusion in Loki’s features but he fell silent instead of replying to her question. Gna did not repeat her question. She let the silence hang between them until Loki spoke again. 

“I remember seeing you among my mother’s handmaidens. I never knew your name until today but it always struck me as odd that she would send the smallest least imposing young woman she had in her employ on the most dangerous of tasks. Does it make you happy to risk yourself for the queen’s sake?” 

Gna found she was slightly offended at Loki’s question. “First of all, I’m not exactly helpless. I carry two daggers which I know how to use and I am known for being a swift traveller. I can handle dangerous tasks. And secondly, I don’t do it entirely for the queen. I do it for myself as well. As Frigga’s messenger I get the chance to visit places in all nine realms, places that other handmaidens would never presume to go. So yes, it does make me happy.” 

Loki smiled to himself. “You have a power that other handmaidens do not have.” 

“It’s not the same as…” Gna began to argue, knowing where he was steering the conversation. 

“It’s hardly any different. Besides, I was born a prince. I was meant to rule. I don’t want to harm anyone. I merely want to do what I was meant to do. What is the wrong in that?” 

“You may have a point,” she conceded, not because she agreed with him but because she realized he needed her approval. It was a simple enough thing to lend her approval for now and it was probably the polite thing to do since he was offering her temporary shelter. 

That night Gna found herself sleeping a strange bedroom. She slept for a few hours and could not manage to stay asleep any longer. She got out of bed, paced the room a few times, and then went to have a look out the window. There were lamp lights and candles in some of the city windows. Many of the buildings were dark. Across the street near the end of the block two men with lanterns stood conversing. As the minutes ticked by several other men carrying lamps joined their conversation. In the darkness it took a Gna a moment to realize that it was a gathering of Essex men. Then the group moved from the corner headed towards Loki’s house. She exited her room and went down the hallway to Loki’s bedroom door. He answered her knock right away. 

“There’s something you need to see,” she told him. Loki followed her back to her bedroom window. 

“We don’t have much time,” Loki said on seeing the approaching group. 

“There’s twenty one lamps,” Gna counted quickly. “I think we could handle so few.” 

“If I fight them then Essex will realize that I am not human and I’ll never be able to stop fighting him. It will ruin all my plans. No. You’re going to hide in the pantry and I will create an illusion to keep them from seeing the door.” he grabbed her hand and led her down the stairs. He pushed her into the pantry and had his hand on the door to shut her in. 

“Wait!” she demanded before he could close the door. “You could hide too. You wouldn’t have to lie to them or fight them. They’d just believe you’re not at home.” Gna suggested. The last thing she wanted was to have to tell Frigga that Loki got hurt protecting her. He probably wouldn’t get hurt at all and he probably had an agenda that had very little to do with her personal safety but she had to make the suggestion all the same, partly because she was afraid of being left in there alone should Loki fail to return for her. 

Loki only hesitated a moment before he stepped into the pantry and closed the door on the both of them. He spoke a quick incantation and the door changed to a wall. The pantry was a small room with shelves four feet wide that reached to the ceiling. There was barely two feet of space to stand between the shelves and the wall. And now with the door changed to a wall there was no light at all. The pantry was pitch dark. 

Soon they heard the sounds of knocking at the front door. Essex men eventually entered the house and the sounds of a search filled the area. They heard voices in the kitchen. 

“He’ll have to come back sometime. Maybe not to the house but isn’t gonna abandon his little Society. When he does, we’ll find her.” 

“He’s probably still here,” another voice said. “They say he’s a magician. We just gotta wait.” 

“We could wait here a few days, I suppose,” the first man said again. 

“I should go out there and put an end to this,” Loki whispered. 

“No…” She caught his arm in the darkness. “Don’t leave me alone in here.” her fear of being trapped was overwhelming her logic. 

“I won’t be long,” Loki told her. 

She tightened her grip on his arm. “If it doesn’t work in your favor, I will be trapped in here. If you go out, I’m going with you. I won’t be trapped.” 

“Fine,” Loki reluctantly agreed. 

The search of the house soon grew quiet as some of the men left and went on to other tasks. A few stayed behind to see if Loki or his powerful guest would return. As the time passed Gna grew tired of standing and she sunk down to the floor with her back against the wall, hugging her knees. The space was barely large enough for Loki to do the same. So they sat one the floor of the pantry with their knees touching. Gna drifted in and out of sleep. 

Eventually Gna could sleep no longer and she knew it must be morning. “Are you awake?” she whispered to Loki. 

“Indeed,” he replied. “I am growing uncomfortable with the lack of space. Are you sure you won’t allow me to pass through the outer wall and return by the front door? I can tell our visitors I have been away at an alehouse and be rid of them soon enough.” 

“Can you bring me with you through the outer wall?” 

“I could but I imagine they have someone keeping watch outside. It could be dangerous.” 

“I don’t care. It has to be better than being trapped alone in a pantry.” 

“I find it curious that you fear being trapped alone more than you fear being trapped with the god of mischief.” 

“Is there a reason I should fear you?” Gna asked him. 

“Maybe not fear, but I imagine no one in Asgard speaks of me with kindness anymore but somehow you have yet to be anything but polite.” 

“Your mother told me she had spoken to you with her magic before the attack on New York. She told me that the scepter Thanos gave you had addled your mind and used your anger at Odin to make you do Thanos bidding. Thus, I have no reason to be anything but kind. Not when I know that what happened was not done freely.” 

The pantry fell silent and Gna wondered if Loki had forgotten his plan to escape. “Did Mother tell you that Thanos tortured me?” 

“No…” Gna let out a breath. At least it all made sense now. The pain in his eyes…

“I wonder if she even knows,” Loki mused aloud. 

“Perhaps that is why she is so worried for you.” 

“I don’t want her to worry for me. I am fine,” he said emphatically. 

“I’m not sure you are,” Gna said a little sadly. “Why not come back to Asgard? If Odin knew the truth he would be merciful.” 

“I don’t want Odin’s mercy!” Loki said, his tone growling louder than a whisper. “Or Thor’s. You don’t know what it’s like, learning that your whole family was a lie.” 

“Maybe I do,” Gna argued. “I am an orphan and have been Frigga’s handmaid since I was a small child. There was a time that I thought she was my mother. When I was thirteen Frigga brought me to her chambers and told me that she had taken me into her household at age three but I was not her daughter...she had allowed me to call her mother because she hadn’t had the heart to tell me that I had no mother, she realized that it had been a mistake to not tell me the truth…” 

“Were you angry?” Loki asked. 

“Yes,” Gna breathed the word as she wiped away her tears in the darkness. “I was so angry that I wanted to kill people and I wanted to die all at once. I didn’t know who I was or what I was meant to do.” 

Loki’s hand found hers in the darkness and held on tightly. “And yet you remained in my mother’s employ as her most trusted messenger.” 

“I did, because seeing so many places and so many people brings me comfort. I wasn’t meant to stay in any one place for long. I don’t belong anywhere and never will.” 

“Then I should let you out of here so you can return to your adventures,” Loki said, getting to his feet. He pulled Gna to her feet as well. “We’ll need to switch places so I can have a look outside.” 

It was impossible to switch places in such a small space without getting very close to each other. Gna had honestly not spent a great deal of time in male company and as she pressed close to him to switch places she found that she rather liked being so close to him. Loki cast a spell and let his hand pass through the exterior wall. The he put his head out and had a quick look around. 

“Looks clear to me. Come on,” he pulled her through the wall after him. Then he walked with her quickly to tree that grew at one corner of his house. “Remain still and I will disguise you as part of this tree. I’ll be back for you as soon as I’ve dealt with the visitors.” 

It seemed like forever waiting for Loki to return. He came back leading her horse. “They won’t be able to catch you if you have him,” Loki gave as explanation. 

He was right. There was no way Essex men could catch her on her mount. The Asgardian steed had powers of his own. Overcome with thankfulness Gna stepped forward and she kissed Loki. The kiss had been entirely impulsive but Loki didn’t seem to mind. His arms came around her and he kissed her in return. 

“I don’t suppose you have to go right away?” Loki said huskily as he let her go. 

“I could stay a little longer,” Gna admitted. “Maybe a week or two.” 

“Good,” Loki said and he kissed her again. 

***

Gna waited in Frigga’s bedchamber for her mistress to return. She had news from several of the places she had been. 

“Well you’re looking radiant today,” Frigga said as she entered the room. Her son Thor was at her side. “I trust all your messages were well received?” 

“They were my lady. The shipments arrived safely and I have the payment here in my bags,” Gna reached for her bag on the floor and found it more difficult to bend down than it used to be. 

“Gna...are you…” Frigga began a question and then hesitated to finish it. “How long have you been with child?” 

Gna dropped the bag of coins as soon as she had picked it up. She turned to face her mistress, worry in her features. “My queen I…” 

Frigga raised a hand as if to motion her to stop speaking. “You needn’t worry. I realize we live in different times now. I don’t care that you are unwed. I am merely curious to know what sort of man has finally managed to win your affection.” 

Thor looked a little uncomfortable and took a step towards the door. “Perhaps Mother I should leave the two of you to speak alone.” 

“Nonsense Thor. If this pregnancy was not the result of a mutual affection then I will need your assistance in locating the ruffian who did this to her,” Frigga told her son. Thor didn’t leave. 

“Yes, it was a mutual affection,” Gna explained. “Will I be permitted to continue my duties?” 

“Of course you will, if you are feeling well enough,” Frigga agreed. “But tell us, who is he?” 

“I am sworn to secrecy,” she said. 

“What sort of a man would ask the mother of his child keep his existence secret?” Thor asked, unhappy with the prospect. 

“It’s not like that. In fact, we are wed,” she held up her hand and stripped off her riding glove, revealing the ring. “But I can not speak of him all the same.” 

Frigga looked a little disturbed by the words of her handmaiden and then realization dawned on her. “You have been aglow like this ever since I sent you to Midgard six months ago. Heimdall tells me that you visit Boston as often as anywhere else. I couldn’t make sense of why until now.” 

“What’s in Boston?” Thor asked. 

“Loki is,” Frigga told him. She turned to Gna. “Loki is the father of your child.” 

Gna nodded, biting back her tears. “I’ll not tell you how to find him,” she said as she wiped away the tears that she could not prevent escaping. 

“Good,” Frigga said with a small smile. “It’s good that Loki has someone in his life who is loyal to him. Maybe your love and loyalty will help him to accept the past and finally be happy.” 

“I think he is happy,” Gna told her queen. 

“Then maybe you should go to him. I will release you from my service if you would prefer to be with your husband. You may return later when your child is older.” 

Gna was almost ready to accept that offer when Thor spoke up. “What is Loki doing in Boston?” 

“Trying to gain wealth and wealthy friends and influence,” Gna told him honestly. 

“He’s planning something,” Thor said. 

“He is,” Gna agreed. “I don’t know exactly what I don’t know that I care. People in Boston love him and maybe he deserves their love and maybe he doesn’t, but he does need it. He is living somewhere that he finally has what he needs to be happy and he isn’t hurting anyone. I can’t see the harm.” 

“I want to see him. Can you take me to see him?” Thor asked her. 

“It would be a betrayal of his trust if I did. I will ask him though if he would be willing to meet with you.” 

“Go then,” Frigga instructed, “Return to Boston and if you can convince Loki to meet with his family we would love to see him. If not, at least your family can be whole.” 

***

Gna went up the front steps of the old Boston townhouse and opened the door with the key in her pocket. Loki came out of the parlor and greeted her with a smile. “You’re home.” 

“I am. I’m home.”


End file.
